Slipknot’s Business Manager Says Chris Fehn Was Just a Hired Employee

Most of what we’ve learned so far about the ongoing lawsuit between Slipknot and percussionist Chris Fehn, who was let go from the group earlier this year, has been from Fehn’s side, with his legal representation speaking publicly about the matter on his behalf. Up until now we’ve had little insight on what stance Slipknot would take other than some brief, vague public statements.

Due to a new court filing, we’ve now learned Slipknot’s position: Fehn was never an equal partner in the band, as he claimed, but was always an employee who was being paid a fee to do his job. While that might sound cold, it’s not atypical for bands to operate this way: there’s often a creative nucleus who founded the band, directs its business and writes most or all of the music — in this case Corey Taylor and Shawn Crahan (Clown) — and the rest of the members are paid a salary. Some bands certainly do operate as equal partnerships, but it would appear that Slipknot did not, much to Fehn’s dismay.

The attorney for Slipknot’s business manager, Rob Shore, who is named in the lawsuit, filed an affidavit on his behalf in New York State court yesterday explaining Shore’s position. RockFeed has obtained that document and shared parts of it in the video below. The affidavit includes the following line outlining Fehn’s role in the group:

“Mr. Fehn performed with Slipknot and received a fee for doing so. He is not a shareholder, owner or member of any business entity he names as a defendant in this action.”

Later in the document, Shore, through his attorneys, elaborates on Taylor and Crahan’s roles in the band’s business:

“Defendants, Michael Shawn Crahan and Corey Taylor, are founding members of the musical band professionally known as ‘Slipknot’ (the ‘Band’). All remaining defendants are entities through which the band’s business is or was conducted.”

The implication of the above is that Crahan and Taylor are specifically named in the lawsuit along with several business entities related to Slipknot.

Fehn could, and probably will, claim that he SHOULD have been a “shareholder, owner or member” of any Slipknot-related business entities — or that he was led to believe he was — but those claims will only take him as far as anything that’s written on paper as such. If it’s the case that there was never any paperwork specifying who owns the Slipknot name and how members of the band were to be compensated (including Fehn), I imagine it’ll be left for the courts to decide based on circumstantial evidence that the defendants will present. And if Fehn didn’t play an active role in writing Slipknot’s music or conducting their business, that will certainly be a difficult route for him to take.

As I’ve been saying, there’s simply too much information that isn’t publicly known at the moment to reach any conclusions. Things certainly don’t look great for Fehn at the moment, which is why I imagine Slipknot will end up paying him a settlement out of court to make him go away. Stay tuned.

Slipknot on tour with Volbeat, Gojira and Behemoth: 

Fri Jul 26 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre [TICKETS]
Sat Jul 27 – San Bernardino, CA – San Manuel Amphitheater [TICKETS]
Thu Aug 1 – Salt Lake City, UT – USANA Amphitheatre [TICKETS]
Sat Aug 3 – Albuquerque, NM – Isleta Amphitheater [TICKETS]
Sun Aug 4 – Phoenix, AZ – Ak-Chin Pavilion [TICKETS]
Tue Aug 6 – Denver, CO – Pepsi Center [TICKETS]
Thu Aug 8 – Lincoln, NE – Pinnacle Bank Arena [TICKETS]
Sat Aug 10 – Des Moines, IA – Iowa State Fairgrounds* [TICKETS]
Sun Aug 11 – Tinley Park, IL – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre [TICKETS]
Mon Aug 12 – Clarkston, MI – DTE Energy Music Theatre [TICKETS]
Wed Aug 14 – Virginia Beach, VA – Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater [TICKETS]
Fri Aug 16 – Noblesville, IN – Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center [TICKETS]
Sat Aug 17 – Bonner Springs, KS – Providence Medical Center Amphitheater [TICKETS]
Sun Aug 18 – Maryland Heights, MO – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre [TICKETS]
Tue Aug 20 – Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage [TICKETS]
Wed Aug 21 – Saratoga Springs, NY – Saratoga Performing Arts Center [TICKETS]
Fri Aug 23 – Burgettstown, PA – KeyBank Pavilion [TICKETS]
Sat Aug 24 – Scranton, PA – The Pavilion at Montage Mountain [TICKETS]
Sun Aug 25 – Darien Center, NY – Darien Lake Amphitheater [TICKETS]
Tue Aug 27 – Mansfield, MA – The Xfinity Center [TICKETS]
Wed Aug 28 – Wantagh, NY – Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater [TICKETS]
Fri Aug 30 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center [TICKETS]
Sat Aug 31 – Camden, NJ – BB&T Pavilion [TICKETS]
Sun Sep 1 – Bristow, VA – Jiffy Lube Live [TICKETS]
Tue Sep 3 – Alpharetta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre [TICKETS]
Wed Sep 4 – Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre [TICKETS]
Fri Sep 6 – Austin, TX – Austin360 Amphitheater at Circuit of The Americas [TICKETS]
Sat Sep 7 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion [TICKETS]
Sun Sep 8 – The Woodlands, TX – The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion presented by Huntsman [TICKETS]

*Iowa State Fair – Slipknot & Gojira only

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